The present invention relates to improved fasteners for pipes such as fuel oil lines and brake fluid lines and, more specifically, to a fastener comprising a base, pipe fastening portions connected to the base, and a stud engaging portion connected to at least one of the base and the pipe fastening portions to engage a stud extending from a support, and in which pipes held by the pipe fastening portions are mounted on the support by coupling the stud engaging portion to the stud.
Fasteners for pipes such as fuel oil lines and brake fluid lines are well known. See, for example, Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Application Publication 60-73987 (Patent Document 1: corresponding to Examined Utility Model Application Publication 64-3891) disclosing a fastener comprising a base, pipe fastening portions connected to the base, and a stud engaging portion connected to either the base or the pipe fastening portions to engage a stud extending from a support. This fastener uses a bolt as the stud, and the stud engaging portion is strongly and easily screwed onto the stud using a power screwdriver. A cover is attached to the fastener to protect the fastened pipes.
Kokai 11-190324 (Patent Document 2) discloses a clamp attached to a stud bolt. This clamp can be used as a wire harness connector, and is mounted on a car body by engaging a stud bolt extending from the car body. An anti-noise cap is attached to the clamp at the end of the stud bolt to keep the clamp from generating noise.
A fastener for pipes such as fuel oil lines and brake fluid lines is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,450,459 (Patent Document 3), in which an electrical connection plate for establishing an electrical connection between pipes and the stud is formed on the back side of a base, and any charge stored in the pipes is discharged to a car body via the stud.
Pipe fasteners for mounting fuel oil lines and brake fluid lines using studs extending from car bodies are used on the floor of vehicles and in the engine compartment. In the engine compartment, for example, if the frame on which a stud extends outward is bent in a collision, the end of the stud may not only damage other parts of the car but may also rupture the adjacent fuel tank, causing a major disaster. To prevent this from happening, the end of the stud must be prevented from puncturing the fuel tank if the frame from which the stud extends is bent.
In the fastener disclosed in Patent Document 1, a cover is attached to protect the pipes, but prevention of fuel tank punctures from the end of the stud is not mentioned, and no consideration is given to fuel tank ruptures. The cover to the fastener in Patent Document 1, moreover, is attached after the stud engaging portion has been mounted on the stud, and cannot be attached to the fastener first. A cap is placed on the end of the stud to reduce noise in the clamp described in Patent Document 2, but no consideration is given to punctures by the end of the stud. An electrical connection plate is placed on the back side of the base in the fastener described in Patent Document 3 to allow the charge stored in the pipes to escape, but Patent Document 3 also does not teach preventing punctures by the end of the stud.